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Despite the possible pros, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) warns parents notto place their infants to sleep in adult beds, stating that the practice puts babies at risk of suffocation and strangulation. And the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) agrees.

Co-sleeping, also called the family bed, is a practice in which babies and young children sleep with one or both parents, as opposed to a separate infant bed. It is standard practice in many parts of the world, and is practiced by a significant minority in countries where infant beds are also used.

Answer by
Anonymous
at 2:34 PM on Feb. 11, 2010

One study reported mothers getting more sleep by co-sleeping and breastfeeding than by other arrangements.[8]

It has been argued that co-sleeping evolved over five million years, that it alters the infant's sleep experience and the number of maternal inspections of the infant, and that it provides a beginning point for considering possibly unconventional ways of helping reduce the risk of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS).[9][10]

Stress hormones are lower in mothers and babies who co-sleep, specifically the balance of the stress hormone cortisol, the control of which is essential for a baby's healthy growth.[11][12][13][14]

In studies with animals, infants who stayed close to their mothers had higher levels of growth hormones and enzymes necessary for brain and heart growth.[15][16]